Eighteen teams cleave through the river in a dragon boat race held in Yunlong town, Yinzhou district, Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province on May 26. [Photo/zj.zjol.com]

A dragon boat race was held in Yunlong town, Yinzhou district, Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province on May 26, as a part of a local celebration of the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival which falls on June 7. Eighteen teams joined in the race. 

The race, having been held annually since 2009, has become a popular sports event among the local young people and attracts thousands of spectators every year. The number of local dragon boat teams has also risen from only three to more than 20.

Local history of the race can be dated back to over 2,000 years ago, as proved by a bronze battle-axe relic from the Warring States Period (475-221BC) unearthed on a mountain near the town, which bears a pattern of four men rowing a boat under two dragons.

The town kept the race a folk custom for a long time before making it a large annual event. It was honored by the China Society for the Study of Folk Literature and Art as a home of China's dragon boat culture in 2014.

"Dragon boat racing not only helps promote traditional Chinese culture, but also serves as a window for us to display our economic, cultural and social development to the outside. We are striving to build our town into a characteristic dragon boat cultural town in the future," said Hong Feng, Party chief of the town.

In addition to the race, there are also garden tours and seminars available until June 2.